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disclaimer / long winded narrative.. 
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Well I deliberately stayed out of this debate because I knew if I posted it would wind up being a diatribe towards both sides of the coin and I’d more than likely just get everyone pissed at me. But with the name I’ve chosen I almost feel an obligation to respond. You see, I too am a Union official and former business representative. In the years I’ve been in this game I’ve learned its best to at least attempt to see AND understand the other point of view. Rarely have I found that any issue or debate is black and white, right or wrong but rather the truth is typically found somewhere in the middle. When I first came into our Union as a business rep (I had worked for 32 years in a warehouse as a union member prior) our Union had a pretty bad reputation and for good reason. I wanted to at least try to change that. I started by letting the members know that the way to get respect from an employer is to give it. Not always does an employer respond in kind and that’s where a Union comes in. I also told the employers that I would not allow any member to hide behind a Union card. If someone did something wrong and the punishment was just then I’d tell the member to “man up”. Another key ingredient I used was TO TELL THE TRUTH! No matter which side I was talking to I’d tell them that they might not like what I had to say but I was going to be honest and up front and let the chips fall where they may. It took a while but slowly as the members I represented seen that I wasn’t like the lying SOB’s that came before me and was true to my word I began to get there trust and respect. Same with the company’s (well most of them anyway) I had to deal with.
One of the issues you guys were debating was car buying which eventually morphed into other issues. Most of my life I bought either a Ford or Chevy. Some years ago for specific reasons (my dogs and I loved to go camping) I bought a Honda Element. Even though I thoroughly checked it out first and found that it was made in Liberty, Ohio by U.S. workers with more than 70% U.S. sourced parts and steel I still caught a ton of grief over it. The leader of that parade was driving a new Chevy Avalanche which was assembled in Mexico with less than 50% U.S. parts. Which vehicle benefited American workers more? This isn’t the 60’s or 70’s anymore. It’s a different world now. With globalized markets and economies the world begins to shrink. If any one major country sneezes the rest of the world catches a cold. Please don’t misunderstand. I still feel it’s important if not vital to buy as much American made products as possible but sometime that purchase falls into that grey area.
I won’t go into a Walmart myself but understand why many may need to. If you’re out of work and have a family and trying to stretch your dollar as far as it can go ya gotta do whatever you need to do to provide for your family. I don’t hold that against anyone. I also understand that many people just don’t give a rat’s *** but IMHO if more people did we’d all be better off. I don’t go to the super saver grocery stores because the stores that utilize baggers hire more people so I give my business to them even though it might cost a little more but once again, I’m not in a situation where I NEED to pinch those kinds of pennies so I don’t but someday may need to. I do think Abs is correct when he said we all should buy American when you can. The key words there though are “when you can”.
Abs, I’m not trying to speak for you but I think what you may have meant is that when it comes to the typical American worker it should be a race to the top, not the bottom. I will agree that shouldn’t come at the cost of hamstringing a company but neither should a highly profitable company continue to make enormous profits at the cost of substandard wages. Greed on either side benefits no one. Not many people actually realize that Unions are responsible for much that is taken for granted today. Just to list a few, the weekend, the 40 hour work week, paid vacations, sick leave, overtime pay, child labor laws, workplace safety and standards, holiday pay, Americans with Disabilities Act, Laws abolishing sweat shops and that’s just the short list.
SENC, I too have something against Union bosses who are only interested in lining their own pockets and any good, decent and honest Union official would as well. Does it happen? Hell’s yeah. I’m not going to sit here and try to deny it happens. Just in the last couple of years there’s been some really big stories of Union corruption. All one has to do is Google it. BUT, I’m not going to try and hide or cover that kind of **** up. It
needs to be brought out in the light of day and believe it or not there are many, many people within the Unions trying to ferret out that kind of scum that gives us all a bad name.
I’m not going to deny that some of the U.S manufacturing jobs went overseas due to Union demands but there is also a flip side to that. Many U.S. companies kept demanding more and more concessions of Unions not so they could compete but to increase profits for shareholders. When Unions fought back these companies simply pulled the plug and went offshore which is what they were after anyway. There’s always two sides to any story. Kind of reminds me of this:
I may not always agree with someone but I ALWAYS respect someone’s right to their opinion and try to discuss it in a reasonable way so I do appreciate the conversation . I have a little saying I used to tell at negotiations. You know what the definition of a compromise is? It’s when
BOTH sides feel they got screwed… LOL
Well now that I’ve sufficiently pissed off EVERYONE it’s time to duck and cover… LOL
BOT
